40 Reasons to Ride More

With a bit of planning, you can use your ride to pull double-duty as commuting or errand-running. With a rack and some panniers, you can grocery shop while you feel the burn, or ride to work while avoiding traffic and torching calories at the same time.

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Steve Davis/Flickr

Lower Your Risk of Type 2 Diabetes

Type 2 diabetes—the kind that can be brought on from a bad diet, sedentary lifestyle, and obesity—is a huge problem in the US. One way to avoid ending up with the disease is to simply get moving: Research in Finland has suggested that just 30 minutes a day on the bike decreases your risk by 40 percent.

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Familjen Helsingborg/Flickr

Increase Cardio Fitness

The more you ride, the fitter you get: You might feel slow to start, but the more you ride, the better you will feel—increasing muscle mass and cardiovascular perfomance—and the faster you’ll go.

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Tony Alter/Flickr

Fend off Arthritis

Time on the bike lets you get out and moving and in a way that increases your joint mobility and helps protect you from developing arthritis as you age.

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Donnie Ray Jones/Flickr

Delay Aging

A study done in London looked at 2,400 identical twins and found that those who rode three times a week (for under an hour!) were biologically nine years younger than their sedentary counterparts.

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Team NCCH Cycling

Torch Calories

While cycling can be easy, super-long rides and intense intervals can provide a challenging workout. You can easily burn 700 calories in an hour, making cycling a great and fun way to shed weight and stay lean.

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Bill Selak/Flickr

Decrease Risk of Depression

Cycling isn’t just good for your heart, it’s also good for your mind. Regular exercise is recommended for people who struggle with depression, and for good reason: Reports show that regular time spent sweating can help regulate brain chemistry and put you on the path toward a healthier, happier life.

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Related Video: Why Commuting to Work is Better for You

Everyone knows that bike commuting is a great form of exercise with some mental health benefits to boot, but now it looks like the benefits of cycling extend into the workplace: Research from Concordia University has shown that the first 45 minutes of your workday can be significantly less stressful if you opt to pedal to work rather than driving

Your lungs will improve as your cardio health improves, but research also shows that people who ride to work actually have less exposure to air pollution than car commuters!

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EKG Technician Salary/Flickr

Cut Your Risk of Heart Disease

Dozens of studies have been done showing that regular exercise—cycling in particular—cuts your risk for heart disease. The British Heart Foundation has even found that roughly 10,000 fatal heart attacks per year could be avoided if people just exercised regularly. And it doesn’t even take much: The Foundation suggests a mere 20 miles a week to cut your risk in half.

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Leonid Mamchenkov/Flickr

Get Sick Less

If you ride for just 30 minutes a day, five days a week, you’re half as likely to get sick as your sedentary office mates, according to a study done at the University of North Carolina.

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Flickr

Save Money

Who doesn’t like to save a buck? If you have a commute of a few miles and riding is an option, think about how much money you’ll save on gas over the course of the year! It can easily add up to several hundred dollars a year or more.

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half alive - soo zzzz/flickr

Feel Sexier

Several studies have shown that regular exercise improves your sex drive, and researchers postulate that it’s because activity improves vascular health, allowing for better blood flow. It also improves self-esteem, which can help you feel better about your body.

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yavuz/flickr

Stay Sexy Longer

Speaking of sexy, athletes of both genders have better sexual-health than the average person according to a study done at Cornell University. The results showed that athletic women delayed menopause by two to five years and athletic men had the sex drive of men two to five years younger.

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lorenz.markus97/flickr

It’s Healthier than Driving

The number one reason many people cite for not riding more often is that it could be dangerous. But a report from the National Institute of Health states that, "On average, the estimated health benefits of cycling were substantially larger than the risks relative to car driving for individuals shifting their mode of transport.” So no more excuses!

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Warren Rohner/Fickr

You Will Think More Clearly

There’s nothing like a ride to clear your head for the rest of the day, and it’s not just an emotional feeling: Research has shown that people who regularly exercise have less “brain fog” than sedentary folks.

Studies have shown that people with regular exercise regimens are more productive at work and at home, so even if you feel guilty taking time away from daily life to sneak in a ride, know that when you get back, you’ll be more efficient and on top of things.

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Make it Kenya/Flickr

Stoke Your Metabolism

Not only does your metabolic rate—that’s how fast you burn fat— go up when you ride, but studies have shown that it also stays elevated for hours afterward. So even if you ride for 20 minutes, your body can be burning calories at a higher rate long after you stop pedaling. It’s basically an exercise freebie!

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Zach Dischner/Flickr

Keep Blood Sugar Stable

When you start a regular cycling routine, your blood sugar levels become more stable. That's because your muscles are processing sugar that’s in your bloodstream to store for riding energy.

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Ian Barbour/flickr

It's Super Efficient

A study done in 2010 showed that biking even for a few minutes a day may keep you from packing on pounds. Even if you only have time to ride for 10 minutes, it’s going to be beneficial.

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MyDoorSign.com

Improve Your Digestion

Physical activity helps speed along your body’s digestive processes by decreasing the time it takes food to move through your large intestine, limiting the amount of water absorbed into the body (you’re too busy sweating it out), and the result is softer, easier-to-pass stool. Yup, another fun fact to wow your cycling friends with.

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Lan Yin Tsai

Stay Young

Cycling is Lan Yin Tsai’s secret to staying young and active—she credits the fact that she hasn’t ever stopped moving to explain how she’s still riding happy at 90. Researches back her up. Daily excercise, especially low-impact activities like cycling, have been shown to increase lifespans.

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Rosa Menkman/Flickr

Stress Less at Work

Riding frequently causes your cortisol levels to even out, and your general mental stress drops. Even a tough boss won’t faze you once you’re riding every day.

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Mike Mozart/Flickr

Manage Diabetes

If you already have Type 1 or 2 diabetes, riding regularly can actually help you manage the disease by helping your body regulate blood sugar better.

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Familjen Helsingborg/Flickr

Calm Your Nerves

Vitamin D is an essential vitamin that’s found in sunlight, and the best way to get it is to spend time outside. Additionally, numerous studies show the calming effects of spending time in nature.

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Stephanie Sicore/Flickr

Lose Weight

Cycling can burn between 300 and 700 calories per hour. Cycling at just a moderate pace for a few hours per week could leave you 10 pounds lighter within a year.

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Allan Ajifo/Flickr

Stay Sharp Longer

Studies have shown that regular exercise helps keep your brain as in shape as the rest of your body, keeping you smarter for longer.

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Ginny/Flickr

Lower the Risk of Impotence

Researchers at Harvard University found that men over 50 who ride at least three hours every week have a 30 percent lower risk of impotence. So for those who’ve been nervous about negative impacts of saddle time, relax.

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